The Power of Big Oil

The Power of Big Oil is a three-part 2022 documentary miniseries produced by WGBH for the investigative documentary television program Frontline, which airs in the United States on PBS. It is an examination of what the public, businesses, governments, and scientists have known for decades on climate change, as well as the numerous opportunities that were lost to help mitigate the issue.

The Power of Big Oil
Frontline documentary series poster
Genre	Documentary
Created by	WGBH
Developed by	Anthony DeLorenzo
Written by	Russell Gold
Directed by	Jane McMullen Gesbeen Mohammad Robin Barnwell
Starring	Al Gore Chuck Hagel Bob Inglis Timothy Wirth
Narrated by	Will Lyman
Music by	Louis Dodd Richard Spiller
Composers	Martin Brody Mason Daring
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	3
Production
Executive producers	Raney Aronson-Rath David Fanning Sarah Waldron
Producers	Emma Supple Sara Obeidat
Cinematography	Robin Barnwell
Editors	Ella Newton Brad Manning Guy Creasey
Camera setup	Single
Running time	54–85 minutes
Production companies	Frontline Mongoose Pictures BBC Arte
Original release
Network	PBS
Release	April 19 (2022-04-19) – May 3, 2022 (2022-05-03)

The episodes called Denial, Doubt, and Delay, examine how industry was researching climate change as early as the 1970s, how it attempted to cast doubt on the science, and how it influenced public perception and policy. It spans a half-century and draws on interviews with world leaders, oil industry scientists, whistleblowers, lobbyists, and executives, as well as newly discovered internal documents.

Backstory

The producers of the series were looking at answering a simple question – how did we get here? According to Frontline senior producer Dan Edge, they were looking at what choices were made, what opportunities were lost, and what cautions were simply disregarded. What, when, and how much did the fossil fuel industry know about climate change and what was done with what they knew. The series investigates how and why, particularly in the United States, that fundamental reality was successfully and dramatically obscured by organizations deliberately spreading misinformation about climate change.^[1]

Synopsis

Part 1: Denial

Part 1: Denial,^[2] reveals how studies on climate change were conducted by the fossil fuel industry in the 1970s, how it denied the science, and the role it played in delaying and preventing action on climate change over the past four decades. It also examines how an industry coalition and, ultimately, politicians were able to deflate any hopes that the U.S. would ever sign on to the Kyoto Protocol.

Part 2: Doubt

Part 2: Doubt,^[3] investigates the industry's attempts to obstruct climate policy by casting doubt, despite mounting evidence of climate change in the new millennium.

Part 3: Delay

Part 3: Delay,^[4] looks at the strategies used by the fossil fuel industry, including advancing natural gas as a cleaner energy source, in the hopes of slowing down the transition to renewable energy sources.

Cast

Frontline interviewed a variety of people including scientists, corporate executives, directors, employees of public relation firms, and former senators and congressmen of the United States.^[5][6]

• Al Gore, former U.S. Senator
• Chuck Hagel, former U.S. Senator
• James Hansen, former Director – NASA Goddard Institute
• Bob Inglis, former U.S. Congressman
• Timothy Wirth, former U.S. Senator
• Heather Zichal, former environmental policy director – Obama campaign

Release

The Power of Big Oil was first released on the PBS television network in the United States. The episodes were broadcast on the investigative program Frontline for three consecutive weeks. Part 1: Denial, an 85-minute episode was aired April 19, 2022. Part 2: Doubt, and Part 3: Delay are each 54-minute episodes.^[1]

On July 21, 2022, PBS Distribution released the series on DVD, and the Mongoose Pictures and Frontline production was broadcast on the BBC Two television channel and added to the BBC iPlayer streaming service in the United Kingdom.^[6]

Reception

Critical response

The Power of Big Oil was generally well received. Mike Hale, television critic for The New York Times writes, "One lesson the show offers, almost in passing, is the way in which the refusal to accept the reality of climate change prefigured the wider attacks on science." He concludes with, “The Power of Big Oil” offers no comfort; it ends, in a rush, with the environmental rollbacks enacted by President Donald Trump and the energy crunch the Biden administration now faces because of Russia's war in Ukraine."^[7] In the Progressive Magazine, Ed Rampell stated, "This powerful documentary is essential viewing for anyone concerned with the climate crisis—and how efforts to take appropriate action were corrupted by behind-the-scenes big money interests."^[8] Chris McGreal, writer for The Guardian reported that the series "charts corporate manipulation of science, public opinion and politicians that mirrors conduct by other industries, from big tobacco to the pharmaceutical companies responsible for America’s opioid epidemic."^[9]

Accolades

The production created for the BBC earned the Albert Sustainable Production Certification for film & TV in the United Kingdom.^[10] The production was also awarded a Peabody Award in 2022.^[11]

See also

• Big Oil – Largest publicly traded oil and gas companies, also known as supermajors
• Climate change – Current rise in Earth's average temperature and its effects
• Fossil fuel – Fuel formed over millions of years from dead plants and animals

References

1. "Behind the Scenes of FRONTLINE's The Power of Big Oil". wgbh.org. April 2021. from the original on April 19, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
2. "The Power of Big Oil: Part 1 - Denial". PBS. PBS Distribution. April 2021. from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
3. "The Power of Big Oil: Part 2 - Doubt". PBS. PBS Distribution. April 2021. from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
4. "The Power of Big Oil: Part 3 - Delay". PBS. PBS Distribution. May 2021. from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
5. "PBS Frontline "The Power of Big Oil" Viewer's Guide: Documents and Reference Material – Climate Investigations Center". climateinvestigations.org. April 20, 2022. from the original on December 25, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
6. "Big Oil vs the World tells the 40 year story of how the oil industry delayed action on climate change". bbc.com. July 21, 2022. from the original on December 29, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
7. Hale, Mike (April 18, 2022). "'Frontline' Review: Why the Climate Changed but We Didn't". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
8. Rampell, Ed (April 18, 2022). "'The Power of Big Oil' Exposes Corporate Climate Change Deniers and Doubters". progressive.org. from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
9. McGreal, Chris (April 21, 2022). "'What we now know … they lied': how big oil companies betrayed us all". The Guardian. from the original on September 30, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
10. "Credits: The Power of Big Oil". pbs.org. from the original on November 7, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
11. Voyles, Blake (September 7, 2023). "83rd Peabody Award Winners". Retrieved September 7, 2023.

External links

• Official website  
• PBS Peril & Promise - The Power of Big Oil
• The Power of Big Oil at IMDb  
• The Power of Big Oil – transcript